Illustrator Spotlight: Steliyana Doneva

Today we are pleased to feature Bulgarian illustrator Steliyana Doneva and her latest book AN EXTRAORDINARY ORDINARY MOTH, by Karlin Gray (Sleeping Bear Press, April 2018).Enter to win a copy!

Tell us about yourself and how you came to illustrate for children.

My name is Steliyana Doneva and I'm from the wonderful country of Bulgaria in Eastern Europe. My love of drawing began at childhood when I started attending art classes. In high school I studied applied arts with a specialty in children toys. I graduated from university with a graphics degree.

After graduation I worked in studio for animations. Throughout all this time though, my greatest love has always been children's books and their amazing world of words and images. When the first offer for a book came, I started.

Congratulations on your book, AN EXTRAORDINARY ORDINARY MOTH! What kind of research did you do to illustrate it?

Thank you! My work on the book AN EXTRAORDINARY ORDINARY MOTH was a great pleasure for me. The text of the writer Karlin Gray is spontaneous and dynamic-- awakening my imagination. The design of the text by Felicia Macheske brought me a feeling of flight.

For hours my children and I observed the moths described in the book--the way they fly, their shape, and the rich variety of species. I never would have guessed that they are so marvelous, even the ordinary moth.

What is your illustration process?

First, I read the text and let my imagination take over. After that I take the pencil and start playing with the characters until they become cute enough. Then I put them into their own story and explore their emotional state. I work on the compositions and think about their influence and then after all that, I stain in colour.

Do you work for publishers in different countries other than the U.S.? If so, are there any differences in the way publishers work from country to country?

At the moment I'm working mainly for the USA, thanks to my agent-illustrator Mela Bolinao, "MB Artists." I'm so glad she brought me into this big family of very talented artists. Her experience, constructive advice and guidelines are greatly useful. The work with the American publishers is at a high level at every stage.

Steliyana Doneva is a children’s book illustrator living in Sofia, Bulgaria. Her love of painting and drawing started in early childhood. Steliyana studied applied arts in Sofia, specializing in children’s toys. Then she graduated with a degree in graphic arts, where she found her love for children’s book illustration. Steliyana is very happy to be an illustrator for children’s books. By doing this she is immersed in the beautiful fairy-tale world where the soul can fly without restraint.